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Rock & Sole Plaice |
Lunch £9.20 ($18) |
Late lunchtime on a warm
bank holiday Monday while cycling round Bloomsbury I developed a craving
for decent fries, but as luck would have it I wasn't far from Rock &
Sole Plaice, a long standing chippy of some renown. In the recent past
I'd worked nearby on New Oxford Street, and have directed others there,
but this was my virgin visit. Though central London is comparatively
deserted on bank holiday Mondays, most of the café's outdoor
seating - rough wooden tables and benches crowded together on the pavement
beneath a few shady trees - was already occupied, but a yellow uniformed
member of staff told me waiter service was available and persuaded a
couple of diners to share their large table with me. Further seating
on pine furniture is available inside. The menu offers various chippy
staples including a variety of fish, and I ordered cod with chips, together
with mushy peas, bread and butter, and a mug of tea with milk. The fish,
firmly cooked boneless flesh in a crispy batter, was excellent, as were
the large crude cut, just the right golden hued fries. The mushy peas
verged on grey and were almost flavourless, but still palatable. The
bread was bog standard white sliced with a thin smearing of real butter,
and provided a soft moist counterpoint to the crispy dry meal. Excellent
value for the money, onsidering the quality, the central location and
the fact it's (almost) eat in. Diners can avoid VAT by having their
meals wrapped to take away and eat elsewhere. |
| Fryers
Delight Theobald's Road 020 7405 4114  Chancery Lane  |
Lunch £4.50 ($7) |
London's traditional chippies
are coming under threat from all angles as we flock to smart new coffee
and sandwich bar chains. But these formica palaces, as the Classic Cafés
website describes them, aren't quite giving up without a struggle. The
fight isn't going to be helped much by this throw back to the '50s in
terms of decor or comfort, however, but at least it's doing the right
thing in a recognisable way. Early on a weekday lunchtime, several customers
were already enjoying lunch ordered from the whiteboards behind the
counter, while another couple awaited their take away orders. A quick
perusal of the prices (I knew I wanted cod and chips), I placed my order
and seconds later was heading back to the office clutching a steaming
paper wrapped package. On piling my still hot lunch on a plate, I found
the fish to be small, but quite plump, in a golden batter, and the chips
were chunkily cut and well coloured, not anaemic or overdone. The tiny
plastic sachets of generic ketchup and tartare sauce barely contained
a teaspoonful of each, so I had to skimp on them. After a light dusting
of salt, I tucked in. The fish was good, moist and flaky, not overcooked,
the batter crispy with no hint of sogginess. The chips were slightly
on the limp side, but having transported them for almost 10 minutes
wrapped in paper, I wasn't too surprised. Colleagues report that Fryers
Delight offers better quality than another local chippie in nearby Leather
Lane. |
| Loch
Fyne Fulham Road 020 7610 8020 Parsons Green |
Dinner £23 ($35) |
On the site of the now
defunct Café Flo (which I'd visited and reviewed about a year
or so ago) Loch Fyne is one of a recent chain of 17 or so seafood restaurants
set up by a long-established Scotland-based supplier of seafood to the
restaurant trade. It aims to protect seas, marine communities and marine
life, according to the menu, and it uses products from sustainable resources.
We visited early on a Saturday evening and began with gravadlax with
dill sauce (£5.95) and queen scallops in garlic butter (£7.95),
while I tried the mussel salad with pesto and balsamic dressing (£5.45).
The mussels were on the small side (rather too early in the season,
it turned out), but tasty. For main course I had king scallops (£9.95),
while my companions ordered the trout (£10.95) and seabass (£12.95)
off the specials board. Mustard mash, boiled potatoes, french fries
and mixed green vegetables completed our dinner. My scallops were well
done yet still tender and full of flavour, while the seabass and trout
both pleased. A bottle of Gros Plant du Pays Nantais (£12.95)
complemented the seafood well. Unusually for me, I ordered a dessert
- strawberry and apple crumble that exhibited a tartness not quite subdued
by the rather thin cream slathered on top. The others ordered a crème
brulée and an ice cream. The quality is very good here, the service
friendly and prices are reasonable. The fishy decor is clean and modern.
Website |
| Bibendum
Oyster Bar Michelin House 81 Fulham Road SW3 020 7589 1480 South Kensington |
Lunch £18 ($27) |
While looking for somewhere
to eat in the open air one fine Saturday I came upon Bibendum Oyster
Bar. Situated in the airy main entrance lobby of the classic Michelin
building, the bar provides a view of the upmarket end of the Fulham
Road with its pricey Italian restaurants and posh kitchen outfitters.
It also houses Bibendum Crustacea, which sells fresh shellfish, oysters
and caviar for customers to either take away or have delivered in its
camionette, a little coffee bar and a flower stall. Further tables cater
for additional diners in the large vestibule just inside. After taking
the edge of my hunger with most of a fresh french baguette smeared with
butter, I declined the opportunity to sample a half dozen oysters but
perversely chose breast of chicken with rocket, red onion baby artichokes
and tomatoes (£12.50) off the day's menu. My colleague ordered the rare
grilled tuna with Nicoise relish and soft boiled egg (£13.50) as well
as a green salad (£3.50) from the a la carte list. Served cold the chicken
was tender and moist, with char marks from the grill. The tomato slices
were sweet and the rocket crisp under a flavoursome and smoothly sensuous
dressing, although there was just a single wedge of artichoke. A bottle
of mineral water was all we drank. The bar makes a good setting for
al fresco eating, is probably less stuffy than the main Bibendum dining
room on the first floor, and offers a chance to savour some well cooked
and high quality ingredients, at a price. The couple dining next to
me seemed overwhelmed by the plateau of fruits de mer (£28.50 per person)
they'd ordered. Web site |
| Livebait 41-45 The Cut Waterloo SE1 020 7928 7211 Southwark
|
Dinner £25 ($38) |
Dressed up as a London
traditional eel and pie cafe, Livebait is part of the Chez Gerard group,
which is opening up lots more outlets across town and further afield.
Friendly staff greet diners in a clean bright interior walled with shiny
black and white tiles, matched with large black and white tiles on the
floor, and seating is at plain formica topped tables and plain wooden
chairs. The menu typically features a number of fishy delights such
as traditional oysters, prawns, Cornish crab and lobster, roasted monkfish
medallions with potato and pumpkin seed mash, and pan-fried blue-fin
tuna with red chilli blinis. But as we arrived much later than booked,
we opted for something rather more basic - fried codling and chips (£11.20)
each, and a bottle of Muscadet sur Lie (£16.45). The chips were chunky,
crisp on the outside, smooth on the inside and delicious. The codling
was tasty though slightly undercooked and soggy. We finished off with
espressos and Cointreau, Henri D'Os VSOP and a Grand Marnier. For four
the final tally came to almost exactly £100, which seems rather a lot
for fish and chips. Other venues open or planned in Covent Garden, Fulham,
Notting Hill, St Pauls and Wandsworth. |
| Fish! Cathedral Street SE1 0845 100 4555 London Bridge
|
Lunch £22 ($33) |
This welcome addition to London's fresh fish scene is more than a chippy, but does serve a very delicious traditional fish, chips and mushy peas. Light and airy thanks to glass walls and ceiling hung on a reclaimed iron frame, it's perfectly situated in the middle of Borough market, which has seen a revival in recent years with small and organic producers setting up stall most weekends. At lunchtime diners have views of Southwark cathedral not fifty yards away, as well as the market, while trains rumble directly overhead. Confusingly the entrance is at the back. We sat in green wicker chairs at the blue, red and purple coloured counter with a direct view of the open kitchen, and shared starters of smoked haddock with welsh rarebit (£5.95) and devilled whitebait (£4.80) served with a creamy, herby tartare sauce. The haddock was very rare, but full of flavour, and the whitebait was wonderfully spicy and crispy. For main course I had grilled swordfish (£11.50), which came with red wine gravy and lightly stir-fried greens, while my companion had fish (haddock) and chips (£11.80) with mushy peas. A basket of mixed fresh sliced bread with butter was good value at 95p, although you might expect not to be charged extra for bread. The kitchen theatre in front of us was diverting, although the quality of waiting left much to be desired. A young staff was frequently harangued by the competent head chef to pick up orders, and we had a good 45-minute wait between our first and main courses, during which our dirty crockery wasn't cleared away. We barely noticed our waiter, and had to order extra water and the final bill from the others. Well worth a visit, then, but don't expect to fit lunch inside two hours. Note - in early 2002 several branches of the Fish! chain closed. The outlets at Blackheath, Cathedral Street, Canary Wharf and County Hall, as well as two others in Surbiton, Birmingham and Guildford are still operational as of September 2002. Website |
| Johnnys
Fish Restaurant 494 King's Rd 020 7352 3876 South Kensington |
Dinner £5 ($7) |
Local chippy offering
fish, chicken, pies, sausages for take away only. One of the few in
the area. |
| Geales 2 Farmer Street Notting Hill 020 7727 7528 Notting Hill Gate |
Dinner £12 ($18) |
Notting Hill-based and
tucked off the main drag, this is one of few recommended fish and chip
eateries in the traditional manner. Very good value, although little
of the extensive choice of fish on the board was available to order. |
| Prices are per head for two-three courses, sharing a bottle of wine or a beer or two where appropriate | ||
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